RAPRESENTING: THE MISCELLANEOUS MEANING OF GANGSTA RAP IN 1990s AMERICA Master’s Thesis in North American Studies Leiden University By Inge Oosterhoff S1474839 19 December 2014 Supervisor: Dr. Damian Pargas Second reader: Dr. Adam Fairclough Table of Contents Introduction Approach to Danger 2 Chapter 1 Rapresent: Roots of Gangsta Rap 10 Chapter 2 Panic Zone: The Dangers of Gangsta Rap 32 Chapter 3 A Hazy Shade of Criminal: Gangsta Rap and Black Stereotypes 54 Conclusion Ain’t a Damn Thing Changed 74 Bibliography 81 1 Introduction Approach to Danger 1 “Rap is really funny, man. But if you don’t see that it’s funny, it will scare the shit out of you.” – Ice-T Gangsta rap has generated greater public controversy than any popular music genre in American history. Concern over popular music’s effect on society is not new, nor exclusively American. In the 1920s, the popularity of jazz music generated heated public debates over its corruption of America’s segregated youth. Similarly, rock and roll caused great uproar during the 1950s; as did punk music in 1970s Great Britain. In each of these cases, the new music genres incited public fear for its negative impact on youth; specifically concerning its effect on youth’s attitudes towards sex, drugs, violence, and lawlessness. Notably, America’s greatest moral panics were incited by black music genres. Moreover, public controversies over black music have historically affected the political orientation of the American public. This makes the relationship between American political history and controversy over popular black music a particularly interesting topic for research.2 Music and politics have always been intrinsically linked. Music is often used to express political identity, to voice oppression and to protest. Music that explicitly 1 N.W.A., Approach to Danger, MC Ren, Dr. Dre, Eazy E., © 1991 by Ruthless/Priority Records, B00006JJ1P, Compact Disc. 2 Eithne Quinn, Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang: The Culture and Commerce of Gangsta Rap (New York: Columbia University Press, 2005), 21; Leola Johnson, “Silencing Gangsta Rap: Class and Race Agendas in the Campaign Against Hardcore Rap Lyrics,” Temple Political & Civil Rights Law Review 3.25 (1994): 26; Ian Peddie, introduction to The Resisting Muse: Popular Music and Social Protest (Harnham: Ashgate Publishing, 2006), xvii; Tricia Rose, Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America (London: Wesleyan University Press, 1994), 5; John Springhall, Youth Popular Culture and Moral Panics: Penny Gaffs to Gangsta-Rap, 1830-1996 (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1998), 2, 3, 5; John Lynxwiler and David Gay, “Moral Boundaries and Deviant Music: Public Attitudes toward Heavy Metal and Rap,” An Interdisciplinary Journal 21 (2000), 66.; Ronald M. Radano, Preface to Lying Up a Nation: Race and Black Music (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003), xiii. 2 denounces mainstream politics and values often incites public resistance. The public perception of that music as a threat to society is thus informed by the public’s perception of correct politics and values. The public discussion of a musical genre that is both widely popular and feared reflects social and political schisms in the society in which that discussion takes place. Although public outcries against popular music are present in any age, the reaction to their popularity is unique to each era. In effect, a closer look into moral panics concerning specific popular music genres can provide significant new insights into the workings of a society’s politics, values and tensions between the subversive and mainstream at a particular time in history.3 Gangsta rap was a product of shifting political attitudes and reforms from the 1970s to the late 1980s. After the American Civil Rights Movement simmered down, the political climate in America became increasingly neoconservative. Under the Reagan and Bush presidencies, America deindustrialized, public welfare was significantly reduced, and capitalism and individual wealth gained new importance. The political climate of the l980s progressively disadvantaged previously industrial neighborhoods in major cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and New York; neighborhoods that were primarily inhabited by poor African-American and Latino communities.4 A combination of federal neglect and increased policing of these communities informed a complex relationship between its residents, authorities 3 Courtney Brown, Politics in Music: Music and Political Transformation from Beethoven to Hip-Hop (Atlanta: Farsight Press, 2008), 1; Springhall, Youth Popular Culture and Moral Panics, 3, 159; Houston A. Baker Jr., Black Studies, Rap, and the Academy (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993), 33. 4 Although these neighborhoods are regularly referred to as “ghettos,” “inner-cities,” or “urban areas” in scholarly research and public debates, these words are not used in this research unless they are part of a quotation. Aforementioned terms are too often used as racialized code words and carry too many negative connotations regarding particular behavior, culture, and mentality to allow for the nonpartisan character of scholarly research. Moreover, since this research explores the influence of code words and stereotypes within public conversations, it would be counterproductive to use laden terms to describe neighborhoods and communities. Since poverty is a state that anyone can be in regardless of gender or ethnicity, and that instructs many of the characteristics of the neighborhoods discussed in this research, words such as “ghetto” or “inner- city” are replaced with words that acknowledge the severely impoverished and disadvantaged state of these neighborhoods compared to other residential areas. 3 and mainstream society. Gangsta rap emerged from these neighborhoods during the late 1980s, and the music lyrically and stylistically expressed a painful awareness of racial and class based disparities within American society and within the African- American community. 5 The instant popularity of gangsta rap was accompanied by a momentous backlash, unleashing heated public debates, widely disputed trials, and anti-gangsta rap campaigns. The controversial messages and imagery of gangsta rap, combined with its widespread popularity amongst black and white youths, roused a wave of discontent amongst parents, politicians, religious leaders, racial equality groups, feminists and others. Although often regarded as a white versus black narrative, activists and groups of all racial and political backgrounds protested gangsta rap, at times uniting in their efforts. Anti-gangsta rap activists publically denounced the music, and some attempted to rid American society from gangsta rap completely. As a result of anti-gangsta rap activism, the music was censored and banned from radio stations; concerts were canceled or heavily policed; the sale of albums was criminalized; and record labels and rappers were taken to court.6 5 Quinn, Nuthin’ but a “G” Thang, 12, 13, 27; Ernest Allen, jr., “Making the Strong Survive: The Contours and Contradictions of Message Rap,” in: Droppin’ Science: Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop Culture, ed. William Eric Perkins (Philadelphia: Temple University Press 1996), 160; Jefferson Morley, introduction to Rap: The Lyrics (New York: Viking Penguin, 1992), xxv; Loïc J.D. Wacquant and William Julius Wilson, “The Cost of Racial and Class Exclusion in the Inner City,” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 501(1989): 11, 15. 6 Quinn, Nuthin’ but a “G”, 13, 27; Rachel L. Jones, “Waging War on Gangsta Rap, She Accepts Unlikely Warriors. C. Delores Tucker Teams Up With Conservative William Bennett.” The Inquirer, July 6, 1995, accessed June 12, 2014, http://articles.philly.com/1995-07- 06/living/25679533_1_black-women-national-political-congress-rappers; William Eric Perkins, “The Rap Attack: An Introduction,” in: Droppin’ Science: Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop Culture, ed. William Eric Perkins (Philadelphia: Temple University Press 1996), 18, 25; Tricia Rose, “Hidden Politics: Discursive and Institutional Policing of Rap Music,” in: Droppin’ Science: Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop Culture, ed. William Eric Perkins (Philadelphia: Temple University Press 1996), 236-237; Morley, Rap: The Lyrics, 239; Johnson, “Silencing Gangsta Rap,” 40; William Eric Perkins, “Youth’s Global Village: an Epilogue,” in: Droppin’ Science: Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop Culture, ed. William Eric Perkins (Philadelphia: Temple University Press 1996), 266. 4 The controversy surrounding gangsta rap has made it an enticing subject for scholarly research, and scholars have researched the musical genre from the moment it popularized. During the 1990s, scholars such as Bakari Kitwana, Tricia Rose, Robin Kelley, Michael Eric Dyson, Nelson George and Todd Boyd wrote various books and articles about gangsta rap. Some scholars, such as Eithne Quinn, Marcus Reeves and Jeff Chang, have revisited the subject more recently. However, two decades after the emergence of gangsta rap, scholars have failed to reach consensus over what gangsta rap is and how it relates to mainstream society and politics.7 Scholarly research of gangsta rap is generally focused on validating or refuting claims regarding the music’s cultural and political value. Some scholars have attempted to counter negative public images of gangsta rap in their research, while others have attempted to verify gangsta rap’s supposed harmful effect on American